Bladder cancer

Bladder cancer occurs most frequently in the 60-80 age group, predominantly in men. The main risk factors for developing bladder cancer are smoking and contact with industrial carcinogens (aniline dyes, benzpyrene derivatives).

The first symptom of bladder cancer is most often the appearance of an admixture of blood in the urine, while there is no other discomfort for the patient. For early detection of bladder cancer, an annual ultrasound examination of the urinary system and a general urine test are advisable.

The standard treatment for a newly diagnosed tumor is transurethral (endoscopic) resection – abbreviated name – TUR. The use of bipolar TUR in combination with a narrow-band image mode (Narrow Band Image) available in the state-of-the-art IMAGE1 S ™ Rubina ™ endoscopic complex allows effective and high-quality removal of the tumor.

Unfortunately, most bladder tumors are prone to recurrence in up to 75% of cases. And, as a result, there is a need to remove the bladder affected by the tumor process in some patients.

In this case, an operation is performed to completely remove the bladder and shape a reservoir from the intestine, which later performs the function of the bladder. This is a complex multi-stage surgical intervention, quite traumatic for the patient, followed by a long recovery period.

Robotic surgery using the Da Vinci system helps to reduce the trauma and speed up recovery, which allows the performance of all stages without a large incision, being typical for open surgery, remove lymph nodes more accurately and thoroughly, preserve vessels and nerves to the maximum, providing important functions of urinary retention and maintaining potency in men.

 We complement robot-assisted cystectomy with the control over lymph node removal using fluorescent indocyanine green dye. The same method simultaneously allows the quality control of suturing in the suturing area of ​​ the intestines, the reservoir, the ureters, which significantly reduces the possibility of postoperative complications.

Our IRIMI Group medical team operates on the basis of the Medical Plaza clinic under the guidance of Professor R.M. Molchanov, who has many years of experience in performing this surgical intervention: with an open method – since 2005, with a laparoscopic method – since 2015, and more recently with a robot-assisted method. The use of the Da Vinci robotic system allows combining the advantages of laparoscopy with a delicate and microscopically precise effect on tissues, which significantly increases the functional effect of the operation.